After watching Cooper Kupp miss the second half of the 2022 season due to an injured ankle, the Rams were hoping that their star receiver would be completely healthy heading into 2023, but that might not be the case after Kupp appeared to suffer an injury in practice on Tuesday.
Rams coach Sean McVay confirmed Saturday that it was a hamstring injury.
The Rams receiver was forced to exit practice after taking part in a one-on-one receiving drill. Kupp's final play of the day came on a route that he ran into the end zone. After finishing the route, he appeared to come up slightly lame.
Cooper Kupp walked off the field with trainers midway through practice. Sean McVay said Kupp pulled up during a red zone play. This could be the play here. pic.twitter.com/tfEWhAdMUG
— Eric Williams (@eric_d_williams) August 2, 2023
After the play, Kupp walked over to the training staff and ended up leaving the field. McVay didn't sound worried this weekend, however.
"It's really day-to-day," McVay said on Saturday. "He just felt a little tweak. It was a red zone route, just felt a little tightness in his hamstring. I don't think it's anything to be overly concerned with but [we] want to be able to be smart with him and I'm hopeful to get him back out here sooner than later. But he knows his body so well and he's got a specific plan and you guys see him, he's out here moving around. As far as exactly when he's back, I'm definitely hopeful that by the time we at least have our competitive practices against the Raiders, he's able to get that kind of work because I think that is important. Don't want to rush it, but I think it's kind of more of a day-to-day thing.
"It's not something that we expect to drag on, but you never know with the soft tissue stuff."
The 30-year-old Kupp has been one of the top receivers in the NFL over the past four years, but his season was cut short last year after he suffered an ankle injury that caused him to miss the team's final eight games. Kupp had 75 receptions in nine games last season, which put him on pace for 141.7 catches, which would have been the fourth-most for a single season in NFL history.
